Commonwealth Speakers:Values and Public Life


Franklin Delano Roosevelt is the subject of Roger Lane's presentation Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Paradox of Leadership. Photo courtesy of University of San Diego.

Ideas are at the core of the humanities. How and why we discuss them contributes to and sometimes can even define civic debate. This category includes a wide range of topics, some controversial, that are vital to understanding who we are and where we are going.

Community, Sprawl and Taxes
Pennsylvania's suburbs expand every day. Along the highways, traffic increasingly is congested as commuter families live faster lives. What do these changes mean for the future? How did we arrive at this crossroad? Why do our taxes keep rising while our roads, schools and healthcare lose their competitiveness in the global economy? How can we make our communities better? These questions form the core concerns of a democratic Pennsylvania in the 21st century. Preserving green space, managing energy costs, energizing school systems, stimulating private investment and protecting families remain priorities in the lives of every citizen. There are millions of lessons in Pennsylvania history to guide engaged individuals through the processes of research, discussion, deliberation, legislation and action. This interactive, group-oriented presentation will provide audience members with essential information to sustain informed participation in business, government, education and faith-based institutions.

Walter Greason, Jeffersonville
Coordinator for the African American & Africana Studies Program and Assistant Professor of History, Ursinus College

From Rabble to Revolution: Tales of Protest and Dissent
"Congress shall make no law…abridging…the right of the people to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

Sounds simple enough. But is it? When does protest cross the line from peaceful assembly to something else? When tempers flare? When fists fly? When shots are fired? How forcefully can we legitimately call for the redress of grievances? What if the government refuses to listen? Storyteller Alan Irvine will examine these issues by recreating four historical incidents of protest. Tales include stories of frontier vigilantes protecting their lives and families from potential attack, a protest on the eve of the Civil War against the shipment of arms to southern states, a riot over paper money policies in colonial America and John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry.

Alan Irvine, Pittsburgh
Storyteller. Visiting Lecturer of Sociology, University of Pittsburgh

Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Paradox of Leadership
In this presentation, Roger Lane will examine how Franklin Delano Roosevelt, despite his undistinguished background as a student and as a lawyer, rose to international prominence. The talk will focus on how Roosevelt conquered his handicaps, learned to play the political game and surprised both friends and foes by seizing leadership at a time of national need.

Roger Lane, Haverford
Research Professor of Social Sciences, Haverford College

Pennsylvania's Pioneers of Pollution Control
This scripted but informal lecture will tell of Pennsylvania's importance as a national leader in the development of environmental regulations from 1900-1967 (before Earth Day made such regulations a nationally popular political agenda). Historian Vagel Keller will begin with the Purity of Waters Act of 1907 (the first state-level anti-water pollution regulation in the U.S.) and end with the creation of the Bureau of Environmental Health (the forerunner of today's Department of Environmental Protection). The presentation includes the story of dedicated civil servants and key personalities, like Joseph T. Rothrock (the first state forester) and Governor Gifford Pinchot. Lesser-known pioneers like Karl Mason, whom the Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Professionals memorializes with an annual award, also will be discussed. A PowerPoint display will illustrate the lecture with photographs and maps.

Vagel Keller, Jr., Pittsburgh
Visiting Professor, History of Technology & the Environment, Carnegie Mellon University

The Supreme Court: In Times of Crisis
What role has the United States Supreme Court played during times of crisis? Whether during the Civil War, World War I, the Depression, World War II, the Cold War or the current war against terrorism, the Supreme Court has had to weigh the national interest against individual rights. The results have varied, but the Court has the final word, and its decisions often are controversial. Political scientist Robert Langran will examine the history of these decisions. He'll also place an emphasis on the current Court and its decisions involving the Bush administration and its treatment of detainees.

Robert Langran, Rosemont
Professor of Political Science, Villanova University

The Ethics of Book Reviewing: The More Things Change…
Back in 1989, Philadelphia Inquirer book editor and literary critic Carlin Romano devised, researched and published the only survey of ethics in book reviewing ever conducted. At the time, it received wide coverage from publications such as New York Magazine and Publishers Weekly and became a touchstone for people in the field. This year, Romano, a former president and current board member of the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC), decided that NBCC should revisit ethics issues in reviewing to take into account the changes in the business and the explosion of the blogosphere. Romano conducted a new survey in 2007 which he will share in this talk about how some things never change, but many do.

Carlin Romano, Philadelphia
Literary Critic, The Philadelphia Inquirer

E Pluribus Unum: Race, Power and Wealth
More people than ever are fascinated by the intersection of race and class in the history of Pennsylvania. Ranging from debates about funding for public transportation to the effects of municipal wage taxes on economic development, race still is a factor in individual decision-making, private corporate policy and the law. Where do we stand today on these issues? How can we make the future better for all of our children? Why are discussions about the intersection of money and race so difficult? In an interactive, video and web-driven format, audiences will engage in these conversations in productive ways. This session will demonstrate that e pluribus unum is an essential challenge for a democratic society.

Walter Greason, Jeffersonville
Coordinator for the African American & Africana Studies Program and Assistant Professor of History, Ursinus College

Nuclear Disarmament and Outer Space Policy
This presentation will review U.S. nuclear and outer space policy—starting with the end of World War II and leading to the present. It will review the decision to drop the atomic bombs, our early attempts at nuclear disarmament (the Baruch Plan), the 1963 Treaty on Nuclear Testing, the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and the 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty. It will then fast forward to the present and show our position on further developments in nuclear disarmament and regulation of outer space, drawing upon current weapon development and recent diplomatic history.

Craig Eisendrath, Philadelphia
Adjunct Professor, Temple University

The Supreme Court: Its History and Procedures
Where does the United States Supreme Court get its cases? What is the role of oral argument? How does the opinion-writing process work? Political scientist Robert Langran will explain how the Court works and examine its history by looking at major decisions as well as leading justices who have served on the Court. The presentation includes the process of getting on the Court, with an emphasis on the more recent battles between the president and the senate. A discussion of the current justices and their ideologies also will be included.

Robert Langran, Rosemont
Professor of Political Science, Villanova University

From Earth Day to Global Warming: A Modern Environmental History of Pennsylvania
Historian Paul Rosier will provide participants with an overview of important environmental issues affecting Pennsylvania—from the first Earth Day in 1970 to the present concern over global warming. Rosier will discuss the Three Mile Island nuclear crisis and its aftermath, the Centralia coal fire and the contamination and cleanup of Philadelphia's rivers. A review of why Pennsylvania produces 1% of the world's greenhouse emissions and what we can do about it, also will be examined. A PowerPoint display of these events will be shared, along with handouts on global warming data and conservation tips. This interactive talk is designed to draw upon participants' remembrances of well-known events as well as their perspectives on global warming.

Paul Rosier, Wallingford
Assistant Professor of History, Villanova University

Keeping Control: Gifford Pinchot, State Stores and Liquor in Pennsylvania
In 1933, Gifford Pinchot (noted conservationist, friend of Theodore Roosevelt and ardent prohibitionist) was serving his second term as Governor of Pennsylvania. National prohibition was scheduled to end in December, and Pennsylvania needed to decide what form of liquor control would follow prohibition's repeal. Pinchot used his political and persuasive powers to institute the most restrictive control system he believed acceptable to the people of the state. The resulting Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board and state store system has proven to be remarkably durable. Historian David Schell will detail, in lecture format with PowerPoint slides, how this extremely colorful governor bequeathed his liquor control regime to future generations.

David Schell, Allentown
Adjunct Lecturer of History, Montgomery County Community College

Can Science and Religion Be Reconciled?
This presentation will review the split between science and religion that became apparent with the first astronomical advances in science in the 15th century, the religious thinking of Newton and the problem of evolution provided by Darwin. It also will touch on the philosophies of Descartes and Kant, leading up to the 20th century. It will then take up the work and thought of Einstein, Alfred North Whitehead and the advances of modern cell biology which promise some reconciliation of science and religion.

Craig Eisendrath, Philadelphia
Adjunct Professor, Temple University

Barbarians at the Prison Gate: Riots, Rebellion and Penal Reform in Pennsylvania
On January 18, 1953, a fire started by an inmate broke out in several shops at Pittsburgh's Western State Penitentiary. Several hours later, much of Western's general population declared war against the prison administration, a war that did not conclude until January 24. While state officials focused on the Pittsburgh rebellion, a second riot broke out at Western's "branch" prison at Rockview, just north of State College. At Rockview, inmates set fires and destroyed furniture and plumbing fixtures. Not the first to occur in Pennsylvania, these riots were significant because they prompted the creation of a special commission that ultimately transformed and modernized Pennsylvania's correctional system. Utilizing contemporary newspaper accounts, as well as files held at the State Archives and the Department of Corrections, this presentation will identify the causes of these riots and discuss political factors influencing the subsequent state-wide investigation.

John McWilliams, State College
Associate Professor of History, Penn State University – DuBois

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